


Football Season

by I_Read_Fanfiction



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: 1996, Cute, High school love, M/M, link is a cheerleader, rhett plays football, rhink, romantic, sensitive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-27 10:08:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14423139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_Read_Fanfiction/pseuds/I_Read_Fanfiction





	Football Season

It was the fall of 1996. The leaves were strewn about on the ground like warm colored pencil shavings. The low rumblings of a Dodge Dynasty gew louder in Link’s ears as he walked to the edge of the sidewalk. The car stopped and Link stepped off the sidewalk. He opened the passenger side door and slid onto the seat next to a tall figure. 

 

“How was practice?” The taller one asked, pulling out of the school parking lot. 

 

“Horrible. Missy didn’t even look at me,” Link threw his pom poms down to the floorboard. “What do I do, Rhett? I’ve tried everything but this girl won’t even give me the time of day.” 

 

“There’s not really anything you can do except talk to her. I know you’re shy bo, that’s okay,” Rhett placed a hand on Link’s shoulder. 

 

Link shrugged off Rhett’s hand. “It’s not that it’s just… It’s so hard to talk to her, she’s always with her friends.” 

 

“We’ll figure something out, I promise,” Rhett said, pulling onto Link’s street and up to his driveway. “I’ll see you tomorrow, bud.” 

 

Link grabbed his pom poms and walked swiftly towards his house. He headed straight to bed in hopes of tomorrow coming faster. 

 

~~~~~ 

 

“Blue thirty-four! Blue thirty-four! Set, hut!” Rhett yelled from behind the center. With the ball in his hands, he surveyed the field, searching for a receiver. But instead he found Link, across the field on the sidelines, shouting out some ridiculous cheer. He got lost in thought for a moment before he was tackled to the ground by a defensive lineman. 

 

Rhett’s coach ran over, “McLaughlin! What the hell was that?! Jackson was wide open!” He looked in the direction of Rhett’s gaze. “Ah, you were distracted by the cheerleaders, huh? If you keep this up, you’ll be joinin’ ‘em!” He stormed back to his spot near the bench and blew his whistle. 

 

Rhett got up and watched as the cheerleaders exited the field. His eyes were transfixed onto Link’s tiny little waist that was only exaggerated by the slim-fitting pants he wore. He shook his head, and attempted to remove the image from his mind, but to no avail. It was going to be a long, long practice. 

  
  


~~~~~ 

 

Rhett’s shoulders ached from the tackle, making it hard to drive. He pulled up to the curb and unlocked the door. Link slipped into the seat next to him, dropping his bag onto the floor. 

 

“Man, it’s hot in here. Don’t you have A/C?” Link complained, wiping sweat from his forehead. 

 

“It’s uh, broken,” Rhett stammered. Really he just wanted an excuse to see what Link looked like when he was hot and disheveled. 

 

“Well I’m takin’ my shirt off, this is ridiculous,” Link said, pulling his cheerleading uniform over his head. Beads of sweat made their way from his forehead, all the way down to his chin where they dripped off his face and onto his stomach. Light shimmered and danced off the sweat that dripped from Link’s face. Rhett could feel himself getting hard just looking at Link’s fit, sweaty body. 

 

Rhett thought to himself how badly he wanted to tell Link how he felt about him, but he swallowed his words as they neared Link’s house. 

 

“I’ll see you tomorrow, bo,” Link said, getting out of Rhett’s car. 

 

Rhett simply waved back and then drove off. He sped home, where he spent the next few hours in the shower, trying to wash out the pain in his shoulders and his head. He didn’t know if Link even liked him the same way he did. Plus, Link was pursuing Missy, of course he wasn’t into Rhett… right? Rhett sighed and hung his head under the spray of water. He closed his eyes and felt the hot water working at the tension in his back and shoulders. His muscles twitched and yearned for the water to become Link’s hands. Rhett soon found himself daydreaming Link was in the shower with him. 

 

_ Link grabbed Rhett by the shoulders and pushed his thumbs into his shoulder blades, rubbing out the tension in circles. He stepped closer, his hands slowly making their way down to Rhett’s waist. Link squeezed gently and then turned Rhett around to face him. He placed a hand on the back of Rhett’s head and pulled his face close to Link’s. Their lips touched and suddenly the air was alive around them. Time seemed to stand still as the two men stood under the steady stream of water.  _

 

Rhett opened his eyes. He turned around to see he was alone. It was all just a daydream. 

 

The next day, he decided, would be the day he’d tell Link. 

~~~~~ 

 

Rhett’s breath was shaky and unstable as he pulled his car into the parking lot. He put the Dynasty in park and walked to the outdoor hallway where Link came from every day. He waited there for what felt like hours until he heard Link’s voice. 

 

“Hey bo, how come you’re not in the Dynasty?” Link questioned, slinging his gym bag over his shoulder. 

 

“Cus I need to talk to you. Link I-” He was cut off by Link. 

 

“Well I’ve gotta talk to you too. Missy won’t even talk to me. She’s being so difficult. I need your help, man, I just don’t know what to do. Gimme some kinda advice, please,” Link pleaded. 

 

Rhett let out a frustrated sigh and shook his head. “You really want my advice? Stop chasing after something you’ll never have. Give a chance to someone who actually cares about you. Someone who actually loves you. Someone like…” He trailed off. 

 

“Someone like who?” Link asked, taking a step closer to Rhett. 

 

Rhett took Link’s bag from his hands and set it on the ground next to him. He brushed the hair out of Link’s face, grabbed him by the waist, and kissed him enough passion to start a fire. Link took a half step back and blinked a few times. 

 

“Someone like me,” Rhett whispered. 

 

Link stared at him for a moment before pulling Rhett back into another kiss. He wrapped his arms around Rhett’s neck and stood on his tippy toes to better reach the taller man’s lips. When their lips separated, they clasped hands and shyly smiled at each other. 

 

“I love you, Link,” Rhett said, his voice only slightly quivering. 

 

“I love you too, Rhett,” Link said. 

 


End file.
